The invention relates to amusement devices. More particularly, the invention relates to amusement devices sufficiently large so as to carry passengers and be placed in amusement parks and public recreation areas. Even more particularly, the invention relates to amusement rides, such as water slides, which use water to enhance the sliding of passengers or individual riders down substantially predetermined pathways.
Slides, with or without the addition of water on the sliding surface thereof, which allow passengers or riders to slide downwardly into a stationary or moving body of water, have long been known.
Typically, early slides had relied on substantially straight downwardly slopped passageways in which the riders slid.
Previous improvements in the prior art slides include my earlier U.S. Pat. No. 5,137,497 to Dubeta, issued Aug. 11, 1992.
As the size of slide apparatuses (such as shown in my U.S. Pat. No. 5,137,497) increases, and the cost of labor and borrowing money increase, there is a requirement for a slide apparatus that can accommodate an even greater number of people in a shorter period of time.
The provision of such an improved slide apparatus would have the added benefit of shortening the time which passengers must wait in line. Such waiting is, needless to say, unacceptable to the majority of passengers; i.e., amusement park goers.
Accordingly, it can be seen that there is a need for a slide apparatus which can overcome these and other drawbacks of known devices.
It is an object of the invention to overcome the drawbacks of prior art slide apparatuses.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a slide apparatus which has a greater passenger throughput per hour than known devices, thereby shortening wait times for passengers, increasing the amusement value of the device, and maximizing the value of the installed device.
It is a further object of the invention to increase passenger throughput, yet without requiring greater water usage than existing devices.
A still further object is to lengthen the period of time during which a passenger is sliding, yet without increasing water usage, energy requirements, and space requirements, for example.
A further object of the invention is to provide an environmentally friendly water slide apparatus owing to its achieving the above objects of increased passenger throughput without increased demands for water, energy, and space, for example.
Another object of the invention is to provide a water slide having increased excitement value for the passengers, owing to its use of one or more switchback or xe2x80x9csidewinderxe2x80x9d elements.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a slide apparatus that changes the direction of travel of passengers in a small space, yet without the use of a dividing wall to separate passengers traveling in different (and even xe2x80x9coppositexe2x80x9d) directions.
A further object of the invention is to provide a slide apparatus which prevents users from engaging or xe2x80x9cbouncing offxe2x80x9d the sides of the pathways or trough, while achieving the desired speeds, excitement, and rapid changes of direction.
Another object of the invention is to provide a slide apparatus including a slide having at least a partially spiral slide configured for causing a user to travel along a partially spiral path, as well as including a further slide which includes a portion of an upwardly open parabolic curve.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a slide apparatus defining a path along which a user travels along one or more substantially completely spiral curves and/or along one or more slide surfaces that are defined by one or more surfaces which are defined by one or more partially or completely upwardly open parabolic surfaces.
In summary, the invention is directed to a slide apparatus including at least one trough defining at least one path along which a passenger travels, and at least one switchback trough or switchback operatively connected to the trough.
The invention is likewise directed to a slide apparatus having at least one path of travel along which a passenger travels, and at least one switchback which changes the direction of travel of the user without the use of a portion of a spiral path to accomplish the change of direction.
The invention is directed to a switchback configured for directing passengers in different directions, yet without the use of a dividing wall to separate two(2) paths along which the user travels; i.e., a first path along which the user travels in the first direction, and a second path along which the user travels in a second (e.g., return direction).
The invention is also directed to a slide apparatus including at least a portion of a spiral slide and a portion of an upwardly open parabolic slide surface.
The invention is directed to a slide apparatus in which a user traveling along a slide surface first travels along a downwardly extending path and then enters a lower portion of a slide surface which begins at a lower portion of an upwardly open at least partially parabolic slide surface, so that the user is caused to first travel upwardly along the parabolic slide surface and then travel downwardly along the parabolic slide surface, the upward and downward movement along the parabolic slide surface being repeated any of a number of times depending on the intended use of the slide apparatus.
It will be appreciated that relative terms such as up, down, left, and right are for convenience only, and are not meant to be limiting. The term user, for example, is intended to encompass all users, whether individual passengers sliding directly on the slide apparatus, sliding on a film or bed of water, sliding in a stream of water, sliding on conveyances, being carried mechanically along the slide apparatus, sliding on boats or tubes, or multiple passengers sliding with or without the use of conveyances.
Still further, the term xe2x80x9ctroughxe2x80x9d is not intended to be limited to trough-like pathways along which a user may slide. The term trough, throughout the written description and claims, is intended to encompass all manners of pathways along which a user can slide, with or without accompanying water, and with or without the use of a conveyance on which the user travels.
The terms xe2x80x9cslidexe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cslide apparatusxe2x80x9d may be used interchangeably herein.
The terms xe2x80x9cparabolaxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cparabolicxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cparabolic curvexe2x80x9d are intended to include not just portions of parabolic surfaces, hyperbolic surfaces, hyperbolic paraboloids, or at least a portion of an elliptical surface, with or without undulations and variations in a slide surface portion of such surfaces, but are meant to include substantially all surfaces which cause a user of the slide surface to move upwardly and downward or downwardly and upwardly or both, and is not meant to be limited to a strict mathematical definition of the term. The illustrative embodiments set forth herein are intended to be examples of ones of an infinite number of curved slide surfaces that fall within the scope of the invention.